About the Refuge

Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge is one of the largest refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System in the lower 48 states.

The 230,000 acre refuge includes four different biomes that intersect and support a wide array of biological diversity. The Rio Grande flows through the center of the refuge, and is an important source of water that creates an oasis for wildlife in the arid landscape. Scientists from across the country and internationally come here to conduct research in these amazing ecosystems. The refuge is unique in that it was set aside “to preserve and enhance the integrity and the natural character of the ecosystems of the property by creating a wildlife refuge managed as nearly as possible in its natural state.” Thus the refuge is not managed for specific wildlife species but to allow natural processes such as flood and fire to prevail.

What We Do

"If all the beasts were gone, men would die from a great loneliness of spirit, for whatever happens to the beasts also happens to the man. All things are connected. Whatever befalls the Earth befalls the sons of the Earth.” ~Chief Seattle of the Suquamish Tribe, letter to President Franklin Pierce